What’s love got to do with it?

Remember Tina Turner’s  song “What’s love got to do with it?”   That song was the cry of a generation…

“Oh whats love got to do, got to do with it
What’s love but a second hand emotion
What’s love got to do, got to do with it
Who needs a heart
When a heart can be broken”

We intrinsically long for love, but do we ever find it? We equate physical pleasure to love; we equate acceptance to love; we equate having our needs met to love…but in truth, do the things we think bring us love really do that?

We try to catch the seemingly elusive experience of “love” and are left grasping in the wind; writhing in emotional pain and experiencing the emptiness that a broken relationship brings, as it tears pieces out of our wounded, yes, broken heart.

What is it that we are so hungry for?  What is it that we long for?  …this “Love.”  What is Love?

Definitions of love on the Web:

• a strong positive emotion of regard and affection; “his love for his work”; “children need a lot of love”
• any object of warm affection or devotion; “the theater was her first love”; “he has a passion for cock fighting”;
• have a great affection or liking for; “I love French food”; “She loves her boss and works hard for him”
• beloved: a beloved person; used as terms of endearment
• get pleasure from; “I love cooking”
• a deep feeling of sexual desire and attraction; “their love left them indifferent to their surroundings”; “she was his first love”
• be enamored or in love with; “She loves her husband deeply”
• a score of zero in tennis or squash; “it was 40 love”
• sleep together: have sexual intercourse with; “This student sleeps with everyone in her dorm”; “Adam knew Eve”; “Were you ever intimate with this man?”
• sexual love: sexual activities (often including sexual intercourse) between two people

When looking at these things the song lyrics come up again “what’s love got to do with it, got to do with it?”  Do any of these definitions really explain to us what love is?  Do they satisfy the hungry soul that longs and craves for love?  The answer is – No! 

The evidence of that is the cultural dissatisfaction that we see so rampant among us.  Culturally, we’re starving!  We’re always looking for something else, something new, something better, something to inspire, invigorate and enamor us; something to make us feel alive.  Why?  Because love does that, but we as a culture, haven’t found it – yet!

It was in the summer of 1998 that I memorized 1 Corinthians 13 out of the New Testament Scriptures.  In essence it teaches that without love all spiritual gifts and religious acts are meaningless.  In that light it seems foundationally important to the human soul and human existence. 

In verses 4-7 is a clear model what love looks like. If the Bible is understood to be a book written to humanity from God, then this chapter outlines how God loves us and how He expects us to love each other:  “Love Is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Cor. 13:4-7)  

If the reader doesn’t believe that God is real, or that the Bible has any importance to play as an instruction manual for life from the Creator of the life, then I challenge the reader to put the principals in play to determine their validity apart from Divine authorship.  Could there be a nugget of truth regarding the real basis of love found in these words vs. our own human definitions? 

Remembering that we come from imperfect childhoods, imperfect parents, imperfect relationships, we must acknowledge that we may have imperfect ideas and notions of what love is.  We’ve been taught from imperfect models. If you think you have all the answers and are living a life filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self control, apart from God, please let the world (including me) know your secret! 

 The only way I’ve experienced these things in my own life is through developing a relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob through Messiah Yeshua/Jesus.  Why?  Because in the Bible in 1 John 4:7 it tells us that that love is from God because God is love.   Believing the Bible to be truth we uncover the true definition of love. 

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (1 John 4:7-11)

 In this passage we learn that true love is from God and that He wants us to experience that same love and share it. But that doesn’t happen in the typical ways we think it happens.

Through our faith in Messiah’s sacrifice, God’s life (which emanates from His love) lives inside of us.  “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever would believe in Him would have eternal life.” John 3:16

When we think about eternal life we think about it in terms of time. God’s eternal life is not only measured in duration, as life that goes on forever. It is also a quality.  Eternal life has the quality of the best life possible – here and now!  It’s a life filled with love, provision, blessing, satisfaction and contenment. 

To the extent that we receive God’s love for ourselves then we experience the fullness of love and can, in turn, share it with each other. When that happens we experience the joy that comes from the abundant, “quality” life promised in John 10:10.  ”…I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10)

 Just like two people in love spend a lot of time together enjoying the experience of that love, God wants us to take the time to bask in His endless supply of limitless love. He wants us to go higher and deeper. He wants us to be rooted and grounded in love. He wants to impart to us more of who He is through His divine love. (Ephesians 3:17-19)  This happens through learning what the Bible says about love and reflecting upon it in prayer and times of silent worship of God, with the goal of simply receiving His love. As we make room in our hearts and minds for God, and for more of His love, vital foundations will be built up that enable us to experience the love we’ve been longing for.  Once we experience it for ourselves we’ll be able to share it with others.

As a result, we’ll see ourselves being obedient to the two important commandments found in Scripture;  to love God and to love one another (Matthew 22:36-40.)

We’ll also see God work fantastic miracles in and through our lives and we’ll get a taste of eternal joy in our lives on earth now.  

We’ll see that in fact, Love has everything to do with it! 

Love is why we have life!  Love is why we live!  Love is our purpose on earth for such a time as this!  But the most fulfilling love we can know doesn’t come from another person.  It comes from our Creator, God.  God’s love is so awesome and multi faceted. As we come to know His love, not only are our insecurities and wrong attitudes melted away, but we’re drawn into the beauty of God’s other attributes. His awesome holiness, wisdom, goodness and perfection are all found within His love. None of God’s attributes can be separated from each other. In light of this truth, when we walk in God’s love, with reverential fear and thanksgiving, our lives take on an eternal quality right now and  are certain to mirror the life of Messiah.

 Father God, I pray that as people read this, their hearts and minds are flooded with the truth of Your magnificent love for them. Help them receive more of Your love and in turn be holy vessels who carry that love into the lives of the people around them. Teach them, by Your Holy Spirit, how to best share Your love. Do this Lord so that greater blessings fall on their lives and so that You receive greater glory. It’s in Yeshua’s precious and holy name that I pray.

Does faith in Jesus steal the Jewish soul?

 There are teachings in Judaism today that are aimed at keeping Jewish people away from faith in Yeshua/Jesus as the Messiah.  The teachings say that when a person comes to faith in Messiah Yeshua/Jesus they lose their Jewish soul. 

In regard to the Jewish Soul, according to Chabad, Jewish sages have said this about the human soul: “She is called by five names: Nefesh (soul), Ruach (spirit), Neshamah (breath), Chayah (life) and Yechidah (singularity).” The Chassidic masters explain that the soul’s five “names” actually describe five levels or dimensions of the soul. Nefesh is the soul as the engine of physical life. Ruach is the emotional self and “personality.” Neshamah is the intellectual self. Chayah is the supra-rational self–the seat of will, desire, commitment and faith. Yechidah connotes the essence of the soul–its unity with its source, the singular essence of G-d. For the essence of the soul of man is “literally a part of G-d above”–a piece of G-d in us, so to speak. The Chassidic masters speak of two distinct souls that vitalize the human being: an “Animal Soul” and a “G-dly Soul.” The Animal Soul is driven by the quest for self-preservation and self-enhancement; in this, it resembles the soul and self of all other creations. But we also possess a G-dly Soul”–a soul driven by the desire to reconnect with its Source. The Divine essence of the human soul is what sets the human being above and apart from all other creations, even the angels. The angel may be more spiritual, but the human being is more G-dly.

So the question is, let’s say a Jewish person is completely influenced by the world around them and secular humanism and has no interest in anything about God or Judaism.  That same person comes to faith in Yeshua/Jesus as the Messiah of Israel.  As a result the person repents from the sinful activities they were participating in.  The person draws near to God in an intimate relationship.  And ultimately the person begins to esteem the Jewish holy days – found in Scripture – as life giving and applicable to their lives.  The Jewish person, who once had their back turned away from God and the truth of Scripture, now lives their life in adherance to the Commandments in Scripture, living a lifestyle of Torah study, prayer and mitzvot.  Their faith, like that of Abraham rests in the One true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob for direction and fulfillment of everything related to their lives.

And yet those who want to share the life giving truth about Yeshua as the Jewish Messiah are still being accused of stealing Jewish souls.  Why?

How does God fit into the modern day Jewish life experience?

As a Jewish person, I never used to believe that God was relevant to my life. I didn’t find value in spiritual things. I was raised to be independent, successful, a valuable member of society , a nice person and a good Jewish girl. In this day and age, where does God fit into any of those things? From what I experienced growing up in the Jewish religion I found nothing in it that would help me accomplish the goals set before me. In a world filled with choices, I began to read and study New Age philosophy, Eastern Mysticism, Buddism, Taoism, Theosophy and Native American spirituality. I believed everything to be truth and continued down the path of my spiritual quest. In 1991 a friend invited me to a Christian bible study. As a spiritual seeker I was open to hear about Christianity, but had no idea that what I would encounter that night would change my life forever. I also had no idea that it would bring me full circle back to my Jewish roots as the foundation for a truly powerful spiritual life, in intimate relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Creator of the universe. This relationship would ultimately allow me to accomplish all the goals set before me, and more.

For the first time in my life I was told of the Messiah, a Savior. His name was Jesus.  In Hebrew, His Name was Yeshua, which means ‘God is salvation.’  The God of Israel had come to earth again.  He had been here before as we read about in the Torah.  This time He came in the form of a man to give up His life and die as a perfect and final sacrifice for the sins of humanity, fulfilling the sacrificial system that He had commanded the children of Israel to set up through Moses, at Mt. Sinai. Yeshua was born and raised as a child in Israel. He demonstrated supernatural wisdom and understanding of the Scriptures at a very young age and lived life in perfect submission to law and righteousness.  The whole story seemed far-fetched to me, God coming to earth as Jesus???  Jewish people don’t believer that – period!  But, the night I heard that message the supernatural power that accompanied it touched me in a very real, and a very deep place. I immediately knew that it could only be the power of God working to reveal the truth to me. I accepted the message that night as truth and asked Yeshua to pay for my sins personally and to be the Lord of my life. In doing so He promised to give me power to live a victorious life now, and the future assurance of eternal life with God in heaven. I put my faith in the Messiah of Israel and my life has never been the same. I began to pour over and study the Torah, the Prophets, the Writings of the Old Testament and the Brit HaChadasha (The New Testament) as well.  I saw how they are supernaturally entwined together and paint the beautiful story of God’s Love for humanity and His desire for us all to live in relationship with Him.  I began to walk on the path set out for me through what I was learning in the Scriptures.  I was shocked to find out that books written thousands of years ago absolutely had relevance to my life today!  Since professing my faith in Yeshua and studying the Word of God, miracles have happened in my life that I can only attribute to the power of God that now lives inside of me. I put my complete trust in God and He proves Himself to be faithful time and time again.

Gradually everything that I was raised to practice in relationship to Judaism began to make sense when looking at it through the lens of Yeshua/Jesus as the Messiah of Israel. Now my life is lived celebrating all the Jewish holidays and feasts with a deep understanding and gratitude for what God was having us (the Jewish people) memorialize by keeping the holidays, which all supernaturally in minute details point to Yeshua/Jesus as the Messiah. It is truly miraculous to see that and to have the privilege of understanding what God has accomplished through Christ/Messiah – who came in the lineage of the Jewish people – for the sake of all humanity. Now being Jewish is a great honor and a privilege, not just empty tradition and religion.  And yes, it is completely relevant to the goals set before me to be successful, a value to society, a nice person and a good Jewish girl, in God’s eyes!

As a Jewish person who believes that Jesus is the Messiah of Israel, I have the privilege of understanding the Holy Scriptures and applying them to my life. Every day is spent seeking to know God more while developing a deeper intimacy with Hiim that brings complete satisfaction to me as a person. It also enables me to live in complete fullfillment and contentment, knowing and experiencing what it truly is to be a “child of God.” I have the privilege of shining God’s light and love in a dark world. I have the privilege of helping people to have hope where there is none. I have the honor of knowing and speaking truth amid lies.

The love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self control that are mine because of my relationship with God, only made possible through faith in Yeshua the Messiah, are the proof that what I believe is true and God’s perfect plan for every Jewish person on the face of the earth.